The Pokérus Apokélypse
by Mulierculum
Summary: All of the research pointed towards the Pokérus as being a beneficial virus, one that improved a Pokémon's EV. For Tristan, however, there was something amiss. What if the Pokérus had a violent strain? What if the entire Pokémon world was attacked by a Pokérus plague? When the world comes under attack from a virus nobody expected, it's up to Tristan and his Absol, Cato, to stop it.
1. Life of a Researcher

**Hello and welcome to this, my first attempt at a fanfic! I would like to start that by stating that I do not, nor most likely never shall, own Pokémon and its affiliated characters. The only contents of this story I claim ownership of are the original characters and the story itself.**

**Most importantly, however, you are probably here because like me you share a love of Pokémon. I hope you enjoy this story and that it doesn't disappoint you. If you have any comments, please feel free to leAve reviews. As long as you're polite about it, I am always open to helpful criticism. Also, if you think it's great and just want to say that too, then by all means, do that too!**

**I am, as always, your faithful friend,**

**Mulierculum**

The Pokérus Apokélypse

Chapter 1 - Life of a Researcher

The Canalave library was silent. It was after hours and all the trainers and researchers had long since left for home, leaving the forest of books lying on their shelves, forgotten for another day. How loud they would scream if the millions of pages and myriad of words holding the stories of the universe could speak for themselves; yet utterly silent was this cornucopia of knowledge in the twilight hours. All passersby would have deemed the library deserted for the night were it not for the telltale stream of light emanating from one of the upper windows, penetrating into the outside darkness.

Surrounded by books long forgotten by the ages, Tristan sat with his head rested on the table, his hands burrowed in his thick brown hair. At the unusually young age of 19, Tristan found himself in his last year of university, studying to become a Pokémon Researcher. If successful in his final year, he would become the youngest professor since Professor Samuel Oak of Kanto, whose grandson, Gary, who didn't reach professorship until the (still relatively young) age of 22. Tristan had always been studious. He had spent most of his childhood in museums and libraries and had forgone becoming a Pokémon Trainer in order to advance himself in his studies, instead interning with various professors around the Hoenn, Johto, Kanto and Sinnoh areas. Starting his research career in Pokémon breeding and genetics with Professor Elm of Johto, he had finally decided to settle on Pokémon virology under the tutelage of Professor Sandalwood of the Pokémon Medical Institute, with assistance from Professors Elm and Rowan. Though never officially a Trainer (he didn't even have a Pokédex) Tristan had still managed to befriend a group of Pokémon on his journeys that had decided to join him, most notably his ever faithful friend, Cato.

"I don't get it, Cato." he mumbled without raising his head. "The facts are all here. They've been here for centuries and yet I still can't figure it out." The Absol nestled by his feet looked up at its master and nestled its head into his leg. Smiling, Tristan peered under the table and stared at his faithful companion. Resembling a cross between a mountain lion and a yeti, Absol was a felid Pokémon with dark blue skin covered in white fur, a great ruff of which grew around his neck and chest. The feline face was contrasted with crimson eyes and adorned with a tuff of white fur hanging over his left eye in an emo-like fashion and a single black/blue oval.

Flicking his white fringe out of his face, Cato stared back at his master and long-time friend and attempted to smile, though his efforts resulted only in the quivering lips of a withheld yawn. Tristan chuckled and started stroking the Disaster Pokémon around the fur just above the sickle protruding from its head. Cato emitted a low growl which only Tristan could identify as the purr-like response it was. "You've always been there for me, haven't you, old friend?"

Cato stood up and stretched his front paws out in front of him, arching his back. Pacing around the room, the Disaster Pokémon soon settled again beneath the table where Tristan worked and rested its head on its front paws. "Ab-sol." Cato stretched each syllable out through a yawn.

Tristan chuckled. "Yes, sleep my friend, the hour is late. I have some more work to do before the sun rises but that is no reason why you should not get some rest." Taking this as approval, within moments Cato was asleep, his deep breathing the only sign there was still life in his soft body.

Tristan stood and flexed his hands in front of him. Holding onto a pen for so long had left his fingers dented and the tips stained with blue ink. Lifting his chair and placing it behind him as not to wake Cato with the scraping, Tristan picked up a few books and carried them back to their shelves. He had been working in the library for a few days. A Pokémon researcher, his thesis topic regarding the Pokérus had ground to a halt and had no more appearance of progress than when he started it those several months ago. All the notes he had from Professor Elm of Johto were scattered across his desk, but these seemed to draw a blank as well. The first note simply read "Tristan, I've discovered an odd thing. Apparently there's something called Pokérus that infects Pokémon. Yes, it's like a virus, so it's called Pokérus. It multiplies fast and infects other Pokémon, but that's all. It doesn't seem to do anything, and it goes away over time. I guess it's nothing to worry about. Sincerely, Elm." A lot of use that was. He was shadowing with the team that first put the notion to the professor. The other note read "It seems that Pokémon that have been infected with Pokérus level up better. We're not quite sure why...". Tristan rolled his eyes. Thanks, Professor Elm. Great help.

The Nurse Joy in Canalave City at least seemed eager to Assist. She had lent him use of all the microbiology equipment and use of one of the rooms in the Pokémon Center for his studies, which he used during his waking hours when not buried in the library, though he preferred to sleep in his own rooms which he rented in an old fisherman's cottage by the quayside. That is, of course, when he didn't collapse from exhaustion and fatigue in the middle of his work, which happened rather frequently.

Piling through the history books, mentions of what could be considered outbreaks of Pokérus were there, albeit extremely scarce, and all said the same thing. The Pokémon appears to develop a few blemishes and its performance and effort value increased tenfold during battling. Of course, what science would now classify as a Pokérus was then put down to magic or helpful spirits. As such, many stories had been glossed over by time as folklore or myth. Something troubled Tristan though. All the accounts given to him by Professor Elm and by his own research results were positive. The Pokémon suffered no real ill effects and developed at a greater and improved rate than prior to infection. There were stories though, old stories, long forgotten stories. Stories found only in books whose pages were slowly crumbling away through age. There were stories of an illness that effected Pokémon in much the same way as the Pokérus did but developed into something terrible.

He had only heard of such a disease twice, the first time in a book in the archives of the Canalave library. It had been about eight years before, an eleven year old Tristan had been volunteering at the library over the summer when what seemed like an earthquake rocked the city and caused many books and artifacts to fall off of their shelves. Tristan later learnt that what he thought was an earthquake was in fact Team Galactic activity at Lake Valor. It had been something to do with the legendary Pokémon Azelf who resided there. Either way, all Tristan knew was that he spent the rest of the week checking for damage on some of the older books that had fallen from their shelves and on picking up a dusty leather-bound volume on the history of Sinnoh, the spine had snapped and dozens of pages had slipped out onto the floor. Trying to organise them, an image caught his eye. It was of Sinnoh, though instead of landmarks and geographical locations, the map was comprised of Pokémon, and they were sick. Arceus stood alone aloft Mount Coronet, looking down at the world where Pokémon lay dead or dying, each with a peculiar black mark upon their face. He had asked the librarian, but she hadn't known anything about it and he had largely forgotten about it by the next summer.

The second time he found anything relating to the matter was in the ruined library of the Pokémon Mansion on Cinnabar Island, in Kanto. The mansion had belonged to a Pokémon Researcher by the name of Dr. Fuji and was famed for its extensive library. Every sort of book imaginable could be found in the library - it was a historian and researchers treasure trove. When the mansion was destroyed in the mysterious accident, everyone had assumed the worse. The fire had blazed for days and it had taken the water power of the Cerulean Gym to finally extinguish the flames. He had volunteered for the Canalave Library Association to report on rumours from trainers that although the mansion had been destroyed by fire, the library remained largely unscathed. If the reports were true, he was tasked with acquiring the books for preservation in the Canalave library's archives.

Well, the rumours had proven to be half-true. Compared to the rest of the house, the library was, yes, largely unscathed, but this wasn't saying much. The west wall of the library had collapsed in the heat of the fire and everything in the western quarter of the room had obviously perished in the heat and flames. Whatever was left had either already been looted by thieves or had suffered the past few years at full mercy of the elements, being battered, shredded and waterlogged. When Tristan arrived, the library had been almost completely destroyed.

He proceeded to root through the dirt and filth, but uncovered nothing but mulch and a few broken trinkets, obviously worthless in their dilapidated state and ignored by the looters passing through. However, upon resting on a statue of an unknown Pokémon, he had uncovered a switch in the Pokémon's eye that caused the fireplace to open with the creak that only comes from a long disused joint. Beyond the secret passage revealed a room untouched by the time and weather, lined with books and scientific instruments. It had been like Christmas for Tristan and he spent the day in this secret room devouring the knowledge the forgotten tomes contained. It was here he found the book on Kanto Legends. Reading through, he found himself looking down at a page so uncannily similar to the one he had forgotten from the Canalave library, only this time it was a map of Kanto and Mew was hovering above the map, gazing in dismay at the carnage and death beneath. The sick and dying Pokémon had the same marking too, though more distinct here. What had been a black mark in Sinnoh was now a large smudge that obliterated the Pokémon's face, distorting it completely from view. Of all the books he sent to the Canalave archives, he kept that volume for himself, along with the Sinnoh page, and studied them extensively. That was the reason he had wanted to become a Pokémon Researcher in the first place. That was why he was still here now.

Tristan woke to Cato's wet tongue licking his face. Light was streaming in through the library windows casting long shadows across the floor. Tristan rubbed his eyes. How long had he been asleep? He wasn't sure. Red lines streaked his face from where he had collapsed on his books and the musky smell of old paper still filled his nostrils. "What time is it, Cato?" He asked gazing up with half-closed eyes at his friend.

Cato looked him square in the eyes and simply growled "Ab-sol." Tristan knew what it meant; after 13 years with his Pokémon he could understand almost everything the Pokémon said, though it wouldn't take a genius to figure out what Cato was saying now. It was late. Very late. Tristan looked around the room to see a group of young trainers watching him, giggling. They couldn't have been much older than 10 and their young starter Pokémon were out of their Pokéballs and sitting on the table in front of them. Two of the girls had Piplups and the other had a Chimchar, the water and fire starter-Pokémon for the Sinnoh region; the grass equivalent being a Turtwig. The Pokémon didn't seem to be as interested in the sleeping researcher as their owners did, which relieved Tristan. He wondered how long they'd been watching him. By the length of the shadows he figured the library had been open at least an hour.

Tristan scratched his head. Had they been watching him the whole time? He gathered up the remaining books and placed them back on their shelves before gathering his papers and stuffing them into his leather messenger bag. "C'mon, Cato," he called as he started for the stairwell, his Absol happily pacing by his side. Upon reaching the reception, Tristan headed straight to the small café that occupied the east gallery.

Within taking three steps through the café's doors, Tristan stopped and turned as the entire room was filled with the excitable shrills of the on-duty waitress, "Good morning, Tristan!"

Tristan smiled. It was the same every weekend when Clara was working. "Good morning, Clara. Nice and bubbly this morning, I see."

The 17 year old girl in the waitress outfit blushed, she hadn't meant to shout out so enthusiastically, but somehow seeing Tristan always seemed to make her feel like a schoolgirl again. "I'm sorry I didn't wake you this morning, Tristan. You looked so peaceful I didn't want to wake you. Up so late, too! I saw the lights of the library while I was getting ready for bed. You ought not to overdo it, y'know. You'll only hurt yourself."

Flicking his fringe from his eyes, Cato grinned smugly and looked up at Tristan, his red eyes sharing the told-you-so-attitude displayed in his smile. "I know, Clara. Cato seems to agree with you too. I just need to figure out something with my work. When it clicks, everything will fall into place. Until then, I'm afraid it will be many more late nights for me. Thanks for the concern, though." Tristan reached out and placed his hand upon Clara's.

Clara felt a bolt of electricity shoot up her arm and her heartbeat increase dramatically. Her feet slightly wobbly, Clara quickly turned to hide the deep shade of crimson her face had turned and hurried to the counter. "I have your morning tea, Tristan", she stammered. "Lapsang Souchong. Brewed quite strongly, just the way you like it." She carried the cup with both hands to avoid spilling any with her trembling grasp and after placing it in front of him quickly rushed back to the counter. "I have some moo-moo milk for you too, Cato. You know I'd never forget about you."

Cato bowed his head in appreciation and nuzzled against Clara's legs. He had always liked Clara and wondered how Tristan had never noticed the way she seemed to trip over herself around him. "Ab-sol!" Clara smiled and crouched down the pet the disaster Pokémon. A lot of the people in Canalave city were scared of Cato, in case he brought some terrible disaster down upon the city. Clara had never seen it though and loved Cato almost as much as she did his owner.

"You don't have to do this every morning y'know, Clara. I mean, it's wonderful that you do but it must get really busy here on a weekend; especially now that we're in the holidays."

Clara blushed again. Why must her face go so scarlet every time he even uttered a syllable to her? "I know. It's just, you work so hard here. It's the least I can do to make things easier for you."

"Well, thank you, Clara. I appreciate it." Tristan flashed Clara his trademark smile and Clara felt her knees go weak beneath her.

"I have to go serve some customers now, but I shall speak to you later, Tristan." Tristan raised his arm in response and continued drinking his tea while Clara busied herself with her work.

It took only a few minutes for Tristan to finish his tea before he got up and headed into the customer kitchen. There were already a few trainers in the kitchen cooking poffins for their Pokémon and a Machoke and Abra sat around the kitchen waiting with anticipation for their owners to finish making the delicious Pokémon food. Tristan rooted around his bag for the plastic tub in which he kept all the berries he found. Selecting a few Jacbo berries, for these were Cato's favourite, he started the meticulous procedure for cooking up the perfect batch of high-level poffins.

Cato spied the berries eagerly and impatiently paced the kitchen waiting for them to finish cooking. "Hey, Mister, your Absol is acting funny. Is something bad gonna happen?" A young trainer looked up at Tristan with terrified eyes. The Abra fixed its gaze on the pacing Absol and sent out telepathic waves trying to decipher the disaster Pokémon's thoughts, though its only response was the irritated warning glances Cato shot at it and it scurried behind a cabinet before it could get into any danger.

"Ab-sol!" Evidently terrified of the generally gentle disaster Pokémon, the Abra was obviously the young Pokémon of the young trainer, both being inexperienced and still scared of the world. Pokémon often took after their trainers. Tristan liked to think Cato was much like himself, careful, studious of the behaviour of others, yet kind and mild-mannered. His taste for bitter foods certainly seemed to suggest so and Tristan took every opportunity to share his thoughts with his Pokémon knowing that in all probability Cato shared his sentiments exactly.

"No, nothing bad is going to happen", Tristan replied calmly. He had gotten used to being questioned about his Absol as Cato had never been one for Pokéball living. "Well, I say nothing bad will happen. I think something very bad will happen to me if I don't finish baking these poffins soon, so best get back to cooking!"

The young trainer glanced at Cato's fixated gaze on the stirring motion of the cooking poffins and nodded hurriedly, fixing his own eyes deep into the saucepan in front of him. After a while, a perfect batch of bitter poffins was ready and cooling on the side. Cato impatiently jumped on the counter and started eating the still warm Pokéfood. Tristan started laughing and rubbed his friend's fur above the sickle protruding from its head. Cato tilted his head and nuzzled into the soft caresses, his purr type growl resonating from his locked jaws. "Eat up, Cato. We're meeting Emily at the Contest Hall at noon and you know she'll kill us both if we're late." Cato nodded his head in agreement and leapt off the counter, allowing Tristan to put the rest of the poffins in the poffin case and head out into the city.

* * *

The contest hall in Canalave City had only been built five years previously. A Water Pokémon trainer had set up a marine reserve on one of the uninhabited islands that comprise Canalave City. Around that a Pokémon water ballet had been established using the healed and rehabilitated water Pokémon to entertain people and raise money for the upkeep of the reserve. After a few years of quarterly shows, more and more trainers became interested in the aesthetic value of combined water type moves and a water based contest hall was opened where only water type Pokémon could compete for the celebrated Marina Ribbon.

Tristan glanced at his Pokétch, 12:03. Damn. She would be waiting and you never wanted to make Emily wait. "I bet you wish you had a Pokéball now, old friend." Tristan laughed as he ran his fingers nervously through his hair. Cato made a pitiful growling noise and lowered his head. The speedboat was fast approaching the dock and already the silhouette of an impatient figure was outlined on the pier, its shadowy foot tapping to the millisecond.

"And what time do you call this?" Emily leapt into the speedboat as it pulled into the harbour, causing it to rock uncontrollably and the pilot to give her evil stares while he clung onto the sides desperately. She punched Tristan forcibly in the arm and pointed her finger at his nose, eyeing him up and down as he raised his arms in protest and backed towards the edge of the boat. An escape was still an escape, even if it meant plunging into the water. "Just because I won't hit you doesn't mean you're getting off lightly, Cato!" she pointed accusingly at the cowering disaster Pokémon. "There will be no lemonade from me!" Cato let out a simpering whine and gazed up at the female trainer. "Oh alright, Cato; but none for you, Tristan!" Cato leapt up and licked Emily on the cheek. "Aha, I knew it could never be your fault anyway, Cato. It's Tristan who always leads you astray!"

Tristan rolled his eyes and stepped out of the boat onto the pier. "I was five minutes late, Emily. Give a guy a break!" Cato looked at his owner and nodded forcibly.

"You slept in the library again, didn't you? There are still rolls and rolls of text ingrained on your retina. I said midday because it was important, now c'mon!" Grabbing Tristan by the cuff of his blazer, Emily tugged him further into the island and towards the contest hall. Tristan watched Emily closely whilst she dragged him. The 18 year old looked the way she always did; her untidy blond hair falling in misshapen curls around her neck, the same weather-beaten red windcheater undone to reveal a white t-shirt and the short denim hot pants that were 'fashionably' ripped at the bottom. She had new shoes though. He hadn't seen her wearing these red pumps before. He then looked down at his own attire. As always, he was wearing the same navy blue blazer with the white piping, rolled up at the sleeves and matched with a slightly skewed pink, white and burgundy striped bow tie. His white shirt tucked neatly into his light grey chinos and the pointy brown shoes that made it difficult to run, let alone be dragged at Emily-pace. Damn, why was he always overdressed? He glanced over to Cato who had been keeping pace beside him and evidently watching his train of thought. The Pokémon grinned and looked towards Emily. Of course he knew. Cato was his best friend, how couldn't he know? Emily didn't though, and that was probably for the best. Tristan wasn't sure he could survive the torment she'd give him if she had any idea.

The contest hall was situated on a small islet at the rear of the island and backed on to the marine reserve. Only accessible by a wooden bridge carved with intricate patterns of water Pokémon, the building was surrounded by water and seemed the perfect place to host a Water Contest. When they reached the doors of the contest hall, Emily released her grasp on Tristan's blazer and spun around.

"Emily, what's going on? You insisted I come here today, though you wouldn't explain why, and we've been running all the while I've been here and still you haven't said a word."

Emily shuffled her feet and looked up into her friend's eyes. "Sorry, it's just; it's really important and I… I need your help", Emily murmured beneath her breath, asking for help obviously not being something she was used to, or even happy, doing. Cato sat beside Emily and the water trainer began to run her fingers automatically through the Disaster Pokémon's fur, just above the sickle shape on his head.

"What is it, Em?" Tristan knelt down beside his companion and quietly passed him a poffin as thanks for his attempts at consoling the oddly behaving girl.

"It's the Pokémon Ballet. It's the first performance I've been in sole charge of and as you know it's tomorrow. Everything was going perfectly, but my Calypso has come down sick. I don't think it can perform. It's just a cold, so nothing to worry about it, but I don't want to stress her anymore. I can't cancel the show, and my other Pokémon have trained so hard-",

"I'm sorry to hear that Emily, but I fail to see-"

Obviously offended by being interrupted, Emily cast a quick glare at Tristan and raised her voice to almost a shout. "If you would, please, let me finish!" Tristan stepped back and nodded his head in silent submission. Content with her friend's response, Emily brushed down her windbreaker and continued in a calmer voice "Thank you. As I was saying, my Calypso is ill and I was wondering, seeing as you have-"

The sudden thought that crossed his mind broke through Tristan's fear of cutting in to Emily's speech at a terrifying pace and before he could even think he was already blurting out his reaction. "Wait, what?! Hold on! You want my Gyarados to take Calypso's place, don't you? The show's tomorrow, Em! What the bloody hell are you thinking?"

Evidently not impressed with being interrupted again, Emily ran her fingers through her hair in frustration. "Is it really that hard to conceive? I mean, we caught both our Pokémon at the same time as Magikarp and raised them together. They evolved at around the same time and trained together. I can think of no one better to take Calypso's place and I think it's the only person Calypso would allow to replace her anyway."

Tristan looked doubtful. "I don't know, Em. Aquinas isn't as docile as Calypso. Do you really think he'll let you train him for a water ballet? I mean, it's a water ballet for Arceus' sake." Tristan pulled one of the Pokéballs from his belt and studied it intensely. Rolling it around in his hand as if attempting to weigh all his options using the small device in his palm as a balance, Tristan tilted his head and made a series of unintelligible murmurs. Growing impatient, Emily grabbed the Pokéball from Tristan's hand and flung it out to sea. Midair, the Pokéball cracked open and a beam of white light shot forth, materialising as a giant Gyarados in the water. "Hey! You can't do that!" Tristan protested, but his remarks fell on deaf ears as Emily was already bounding to the water's edge to meet her old friend.

"Aquinas! Long time no see!" The Gyarados roared in response and shot a Rain Dance attack into the air, showering Emily in a cool mist and multitude of rainbows. "Aha, it's good to see you too!" Emily turned defiantly to Tristan, a smirk spread across her face. "See Tristan? Look at how Aquinas used Rain dance to greet me! He's a natural born performer; he'd be perfect for the Pokémon Ballet!"

Still doubtful, Tristan turned to his Pokémon and explained the situation "-and that's why we need you to take Calypso's place. Do you think you're up to it, Aquinas?" The water Pokémon swam in a tight circle, coiling its draco-serpentine body before releasing an impressive Hydro Pump into the air before following through with an impressive DragonBreath that sent purple flames exploding through the water, creating multi-coloured fireworks in the air. "Um, I'll take that as a yes then." Aquinas roared in triumph and swam towards Emily's outstretched hands.

"You know, Tristan, your Aquinas isn't nearly as tough as you pretend he is. That said, had you ever entered, you'd be a pretty good contender for the Marina Ribbon yourself." Without waiting for a response, Emily returned to the contest hall leading Aquinas through the water gates at the rear of the complex to begin training and leaving Tristan dumbfounded by the rare compliment he had received.


	2. The Pokémon Ballet

**Hi everyone! The second chapter of my fanfic is up. Yay! I've decided to combine what I previously had as many short chapters into one longer but still managable chapter. that means, if you read my opening chapter when I first published it, its had another few thousand words added, so you might want to check that out. As always, I hope you enjoy this new edition to my story and please leave me a review. good or bad, I just want to know people are actually enjoying this (or not, as the case may be). Next chapter shoud be up in a week or so as it is just under the final review stages by my beta reader, L.P. See you all soon!**

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Chapter 2 - The Pokémon Ballet

Tristan and Cato took their seats in the VIP section of the audience – a thank you upgrade from Emily. Tristan wondered whether the soft plushy seats were going to be that useful right at the front of the stage, in what he deemed the 'wet-zone', but Cato didn't seem to mind and had nestled with his feet tucked under him next to his master. The VIP section was full, but it still seemed that Tristan and Cato were seated with the best view in the house. Tristan smiled, realizing of course that Emily had already reserved the seats for the two of them and the 'thank you' guise was just a way of avoiding the awkward pleasantries, as she would call them. Looking around, Tristan didn't seem to recognize anyone. The section was mainly filled with families of avid water Pokémon fans, but here and there the odd adult and younger trainer could be spotted relaxing in the velvet covered seats, the eager anticipation evident in their gazing eyes and broad smiles.

Looking round towards the rest of the stadium, it was obvious, as usual, that the ballet was a sell-out performance. Excited faces filled every available space in the contest hall and where there weren't seats, there were banners and flags waving and Pokéfans in varying costumes jumping excitably on the spot.

After a few minutes of scanning the room, the lights began to dim and spotlights scanned the contest hall floor. Echoing out of multiple speakers, a slightly nervous voice exclaimed "Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls. Pokémon fans of all ages, welcome to the 14th quarterly Water Pokémon Ballet!" With that, all lights on the central stage came up and the hall began to shake. Opening from the centre, the floor split into two halves, retracting to reveal a giant glass tank with a rocky island in the middle. Slowly, the tank began to rise out of the ground revealing the rest of the aquatic scenery it contained before stopping about half way up the height of the hall. Even Tristan was taken aback and he had been coming to these shows for as long as Emily had been involved with them. She sure wasn't going to make things easy for herself for her first solo production.

The island that had been seen in the middle continued down through the tank, splitting near the bottom to create an inverted v-shaped tunnel, the centre of which was hidden and probably contained a connecting tunnel to the holding tanks in the rear of the facility. The floor of the watery stage was littered with rocks and boulders and aquatic plants with a large clam shell in the middle. The lights began to fade again as a spotlight focused on the entrances to the tunnel. A slow piece of music began to play over the speakers and gradually a school of Finneon emerged, forming themselves into the rough shape of a female form, flowing hair and billowy skirt included.

The school of navy and pink Pokémon swam around the tank in formation to make it appear that the female figure was dancing and the crowd exploded in cheer and applause. Even Cato had raised and tilted his head in response to the impressive display and was watching the performance intently. To his left, Tristan heard a small excited voice exclaim "Look mama! At the other entrance to the cave, there's something moving!" and adjusted his view accordingly. Sure enough, moments later, a school of Remoraid emerged in the form of a gentleman with a top hat and began to court the Finneon's female form by bowing and joining in a waltz.

The effect was incredible. Sure, the figures weren't always perfect and in the confusion of the twirling waltz the figures occasionally lost their shape, but on the whole, the Jet and Wing Fish Pokémon put on an amazing display. After a short waltz, the figures met in the centre of the tank and the male Remoraid bowed while the female Finneon curtseyed before leaning in for a kiss. The same boy from before began to squeal in his youthful disgust of anything romantic and Tristan quietly chuckled to himself. Before the two figures could touch however, a Mantine swam out from the tunnel and formed a privacy screen for the courting couple, a group of Luvdisc on its back forming a heart made from their heart-shaped bodies. The result was timed perfectly. The crowd screamed their approval, jumping from their seats with rounds of continued applause and cheers that echoed round the contest hall.

After the applause had died down, the schools of fish Pokémon swam back into the cave and the lights dimmed once again. Emily's voice, more confident this time and evidently happy with the way the first performance had gone, sounded over the loudspeaker. "Thank you, thank you, everyone. We are now about to start our main performance. This is a story of hardships, of solitude and abandonment, of fear and danger, of love and self-respect. Without further ado, please sit back and enjoy the Canalave Marine Reserve's performance of 'The Ugly Feebas!'". More cheering erupted at the mention of the favourite fairy tale but hushed immediately as a spotlight was raised on a pair of Luvdisc courting in the water.

The two Luvdisc swam together in an intricate weaving pattern, the male Luvdisc performing the attack Attract, circling his female companion with a flurry of pink and white hearts and slowing her movements. After catching up with the female, the male Luvdisc performed a Sweet Kiss move, delicately sending a kiss-laden love heart towards the female Luvdisc's cheek. Upon impact, the female Luvdisc did a comical somersault in the water and the two Rendezvous Pokémon swam down into the tunnel.

As the lights came up, a jingle of bells began to play over the music and both Luvdisc swam out of the tunnel, followed in tow by 5 smaller Luvdisc and in the rear, a solitary Feebas. The family of Rendezvous Pokémon proceeded to play in the water, however whenever the solitary Feebas came close, one of the smaller Luvdisc attacked it with a Water Gun, and the Fish Pokémon would retreat. This continued in the tank before the seven Luvdisc retreated into the tunnel, leaving the lonely Feebas dejected and alone.

Suddenly, the music changed. A threatening drum beat slowly rose to crescendo as the lights on the water changed from bright white to red. Around him, Tristan could see small children huddling closer to their parents, and even one small boy pulling his t-shirt over his eyes. Tristan smiled. Of course, this would be where Aquinas came in. The small Feebas continued swimming alone in the tank, seemingly unaware of the dangers the audience were preparing themselves for. Out of the tunnel slunk a large, serpentine shadow that lingered around the bottom of the tank. The snare drums started to thunder and with a blast of a few trumpets, the lights rose and in front of the tiny Feebas floated Tristan's Gyarados, its Intimidate threatening not only the small Fish Pokémon, but also all but the hardiest of audience members.

What ensued was an immense battle between the raging, hungry Gyarados and the fleeing Feebas. Gyarados would fire Hyper Beams and Hydro Pumps in the Fish Pokémon's direction, but the Feebas would manage to dodge the attacks by the millimetre each and every time, causing explosions of water in the tank that sent splashes of water over the closer members of the audience and a thin veil of mist to douse everyone else. As he squeezed the water from his hair, Tristan muttered something under his breath which probably translated as a bitter "I knew it".

The spectacle was intense to watch, every eye was glued on the terrified Feebas as it tried to escape its predatory foe. The pace of the music kept the audience on their seats, and although everyone knew how the fairytale ended, they all at that moment were praying for a miraculous and sudden escape for the poor Feebas. As the music reached another crescendo, the Feebas fled into the tunnel, the hungry Gyarados still hot on its tail. Suddenly, it seemed, the Gyarados was stuck. The Feebas had emerged from the tunnel unscathed, but in the middle still writhed the trapped Gyarados. Aquinas began to thrash his tail in an attempt to escape, loosening some rocks in the island and with a crash of cymbals, the rocks came tumbling down entombing the predator and saving the poor Feebas. The lights went down.

The interval. The crowd was on their feet, screaming their applause while a few of the hungrier patrons were already up the stairs heading to the concession stands. Tristan stood up and stretched his arms in front of him. Though the performance was breathtaking and kept him alert and fascinated, as soon as the lights went down, the sinking softness of the velvet chairs had their effect on his fatigue. He had been up all the previous night training with Aquinas for the show and every night for a week before that in Canalave library. Cato seemed to share the sentiment and stretched his paws out in front of the seat. "Ab-sol."

Smiling, Tristan handed his friend a poffin and rubbed his head in the usual position. "What say you and I go visit Aquinas and congratulate him on his performance?"

"Absol!" The two of them lifted themselves from their chairs (with great difficulty on Tristan's part) and headed backstage to the holding room. Tristan checked his Pokétch, 14:34, they had another 16 minutes until the second act started. That should be enough time.

* * *

Emily was backstage in the water when the two of them arrived, embracing her Pokémon for all their hard work, tears rolling down her eyes. "Guys, you were fantastic! Did you see the crowd? They loved you! I couldn't have asked for anything better. Aquinas, thank you so much for stepping in. You really saved us. With Calypso sick I didn't know what to do." Aquinas raised his head and let out a mighty roar, causing a few of the smaller water Pokémon to shrink away in fear. Emily giggled and turned to see Tristan and Cato entering the room. "Tristan! Cato! What did you think?"

"Ab-sol!" the disaster Pokémon bounded up to the tank and started communicating with Aquinas while Emily jumped down from the tank and threw her arms around Tristan. "Thank you, so much! Aquinas really saved the day!"

"He was pretty awesome, wasn't he?" Blushing slightly, Tristan rearranged his skewed bowtie to give him something to do in the awkward silence that occupied his embarrassed mind.

Emily proceeded to drag Tristan towards another of the tanks. "This is Galatea's first performance you know!" A young Lapras circled the tank, evidently nervous. "It would mean a lot to me if you could give her a little comfort."

"When did you catch a Lapras, Em?" Tristan put out his hand and started rubbing the blue plesiosaur-like Pokémon on its nose, before working his hand up to behind the creature's ear. Galatea started humming a pleasant tune and Tristan worked his hands over the Pokémon's face, trying to ease some of the worry away.

"I didn't really. She came into the reserve a few months ago with a damaged flipper and I nursed her back to health. There's been no news of her pod, so she decided to stay with me. I'm quite fond of her company, actually. She's really playful and hums the sweetest tunes." Emily joined in rubbing Lapras' nose and fed the Pokémon one of her favourite dry poffins. "You should head back to your seats now, Tristan. The second act is about to start."

Tristan nodded and called his Absol to his side. "We'll see you after the show, Em!"

Tristan arrived back in his seat just as the lights were beginning to go down, signaling the start of the second act. Cato rested his head on Tristan's shoulder, careful not to impale him with his sickle, "Absol". Without turning his head, Tristan scratched his friend under the chin and fed him a poffin. Eagerly, the Disaster Pokémon sat back in his seat and focused on the stage.

The lights dimmed as the lone Feebas emerged from the tunnel. Somewhat bigger now, the Fish Pokémon swam through the water, avoiding all other Pokémon in the tank as the lights changed colour with the seasons, from yellows to oranges, to reds to purples and finally to blue. The Feebas would now have to survive winter. On cue, Galatea and a Vaporeon entered the tank. They took it in turns firing Water Guns which their opposite would freeze with an Ice Beam, creating a constant barrage of icy obstacles for the Feebas to navigate. The music coming through the speakers was eerie and chilling and the blue lights shining through the water and ice did nothing to warm the mood. In a final pièce de resistance, the Vaporeon swam ahead and, swimming in a circular motion, fired a Hydro Pump which formed a perfect spiral around the Feebas. Galatea, in turn, froze the Hydro Pump causing the now coil of ice to close in on the weak Feebas. Defenceless and defeated by the weather, the Feebas retreated to the clam shell at the bottom of the tank and hid away.

The crowd applauded as the Vaporeon and Lapras took their exits. All eyes were now firmly set on the giant clam shell at the pool, the single spotlight increasing the anticipation. Slowly, warm lighting began to fill the stage and the sound of bells signified the arrival of spring. The clam shell crept open, inch by inch, and from inside a beautiful Milotic emerged, still unaware of its complete transfiguration.

On top of the island, Emily appeared, fishing rod in hand, depicting a young trainer searching for a new Pokémon. Many of the water Pokémon swam up to the surface to try and entice the trainer, but none could catch her eye. Emily, suddenly spying Milotic under the water, called for the Tender Pokémon to surface, which Milotic obeyed and swam up. Astonished by its beauty, all of the other Pokémon gave the Milotic room, which only fuelled the Milotic's sense of hideous shame and it tried to dive. However, in no mood to let the beautiful Pokémon escape, Emily threw a Pokéball at in an attempt to catch it. The Pokéball bounced off harmlessly and the Milotic turned round to face the young trainer.

Milotic made a melancholy cry and electronic boards around the contest hall translated the Pokémon's speech into text. "Don't try and mock me, young trainer. I know I am hideous, why would you want a Pokémon like me?"

Emily stepped back and laughed. "You aren't hideous; you are the most beautiful Pokémon I have ever seen! Look at your reflection in the water." The Milotic bent its head down and gazed. Staring back was not the ugly Feebas it had once been but the beautiful and strong Tender Pokémon it had evolved into. Milotic gave a joyful cry and Emily dived into the tank and swam up to the Pokémon. Throwing her arms around the Milotic's neck, she cried "Oh, beautiful, Milotic. I choose YOU!"

The lights dropped and crowd erupted simultaneously. The applause was deafening and there were even a few trainers wiping away the tears from their eyes. The show had been a phenomenal success. Every able person was standing on their feet, giving the performance the standing ovation it deserved and the lights rose to reveal Emily standing on the island with Vaporeon and Lapras bowing, while all the aquatic Pokémon had risen to the surface and were giving their bows too. The applause lasted several minutes, with several cries of "encore!" echoing round the walls.

Emily continued waving as the water Pokémon swam to the sides of the tank. Taking aim, they each let off a Water Gun attack that shot into the air and across to the far side of the tank. The spotlights swam through the air, highlighting the water jets in a multitude of colours as the music blared out for the finale and conclusion of the production. The lights went up and people began to leave their seats and head for the exits, excited children still pulling at their parents coats and talking about the spectacle they had just seen. Tristan alone sat in his chair and stared at the tank smiling. "What do you know? She actually pulled it off."

* * *

Standing nervously behind the barriers in front of the contest hall along with a few other well-wishers, Tristan stood waiting for Emily to emerge. He fumbled along his belt and pulled out one of his Pokéballs. Unlike the standard red and white Pokéballs, this device was black and white in colour, with golden lines adorning the black upper half. Holding the Ultra Ball to his forehead and tapping it with his index finger, Tristan sighed and thought about his actions. Would it be too much? Would it be too cheesy? Cato sat in front of his master and placed a paw on Tristan's foot. Looking up at Tristan, Cato nodded his head and gave an energetic "_Absol_!" to indicate his feelings towards the plan formulating in Tristan's mind.

"You don't think it will be too much, Cato?"

The Disaster Pokémon shook his head and looked towards the Ultra Ball in Tristan's hand. "_Absol_!"

Smiling, Tristan nodded his agreement and threw the Pokéball into the air. "Panacea, come out!" A white light erupted from the device and a Roserade materialised in front of them, shiny stars glittering around its body.

"Roserade!"

A lot of the crowd stared at the Pokémon, a little taken aback. Roserade wasn't exactly a rare Pokémon, but this one was different somehow, oddly coloured. Instead of the usual forest green colouration to the Pokémon's body, Panacea was a lighter, almost lime green. Furthermore, the bouquets of poisonous flowers that comprised her hands were purple and black as opposed to the common blue and red. An acne-ridden trainer blindly fumbled in his bag, taking out his camera, his eyes never once leaving the oddly coloured Pokémon. A few of the other people gathered followed suit and a barrage of flashes headed in the Pokémon's direction. Panacea saw the first flash and turned to the acne-faced trainer. "Roseade!"

The Bouquet Pokémon took an aggressive stance as if preparing for an attack and the young trainer shuffled back nervously, still clicking away at his camera in the process. Laughing, Tristan walked over and placed his hand on the young boy's shoulders. "Ha, it's alright. She won't attack. Panacea is just a bit of a poser, aren't you?"

The Roserade looked up and smiled, emitting a jolly "Roserade!" before changing her position to a different pose, though still equally threatening in the young trainer's eyes. While still sweating under his collar, the young trainer took Tristan's leave and approached the Shiny Pokémon with his camera clasped firmly in his hands. "D-d-do you mind if I take a few pictures, miss Panacea?"

"Roserade". The Bouquet Pokémon shook her head and smiled, indicating her willingness and indeed eagerness to be photographed. The acne riddled boy gave a small (though still noticeably embarrassing for everyone else present) jump for joy and started circling the Bouquet Pokémon, taking photos from every angle he could. Seeing as it was now seemingly safe to do so, soon the entire crowd joined in and before long there was a queue of people waiting to pose with the Roserade, either by her side displaying cute 'V' signs with their fingers, or, in a few braver cases, imitating the attack pose she was performing and pretending they were in a real fight.

The clock in front of the contest hall doors struck 5 and Tristan raised his arms to get everybody's attention. "I'm afraid I have to take Panacea away from you now, we have some work to do". This was met with universal groans and pleads of "just 5 more minutes!" from the surrounding crowd, but Tristan knew if he really wanted to impress Emily, it would have to be now or never. "Sorry guys, but we have got something to do. If you haven't finished, I'm sure Panacea won't mind posing some more if you meet us at the Pokémon Center after we've eaten. Let's say sometime around 7?" The student winked at his slightly vain Pokémon who was trying desperately to hide her overly keen eagerness at being a model again, and failing miserably at it. The young trainers grumbled slightly, kicking their shoes in the dirt but decided that an extra two hours to wait wouldn't be too bad and so they went back to their own conversations.

Turning to his grass and poison type friend, Tristan explained the plan that had been formulating in the back of his mind. "Panacea, as soon as the door opens and Emily walks out, I need you to shower her in petals using your Petal Dance attack. Don't make it too powerful or you might hurt her, just cover her in as many rose petals as you can, okay?" The Bouquet Pokémon smiled and nodded, preparing herself for the chance to help her master in his romantic conquests. Panacea raised her bouquet arms above her head and braced her right foot behind her, preparing to unleash her Petal Dance attack the moment the door opened.

At 5:07, the doors finally opened and Emily walked out of the building, her trademark windcheater tied around her waist. People turned and started cheering, applauding her for her outstanding debut. As soon as she had taken two steps out of the door, Panacea stepped back and threw herself into a pirouette, red blossoms pouring out of her bouquet hands and spiraling through their air, surrounding the oblivious Emily, as well as the rest of the crowd, in a shower of rose petals. Within moments, Panacea stopped spinning and focused all her energy in firing off as many petals as she could, their colours now ranging from red to pink and white, at an imaginary target about a metre above Emily's head. The flurry of flowers filled the air and rained down in a torrent of silken beauty. Tristan stepped out of the path and smiled sheepishly up at the girl in the rainstorm of flowers. "I couldn't find any roses in the florist to give you as congratulations, so I thought Panacea would help me out".

"Aha! Tristan, it's spectacular! Thank you. You too, Panacea." Emily began to twirl in the flurry of roses, her arms outstretched to catch the delicate petals on her skin. At the sudden, though well-deserved praise, the Roserade sent a final energetic burst of petals in the air, as high as she could send them. Bracing her legs into the ground, she then pushed her hands together and drew them apart slowing, forming a growing orb of pure green energy in the centre. Aiming the energy ball into the centre of a large clump of descending petals, Panacea leaned back, gritting her teeth, before sending the attack towards the flowers with all her might. Upon impact, the energy ball exploded in a dazzling spectacle of green and white sparkles as the flowers disintegrated into red, pink and white particles, evaporating with the excess energy in a natural firework display that was nothing short of beautiful. Awestruck, the crowd was silent for a few moments before erupting into a bout of applause and cheer that nearly rivaled that of the water ballet's.

Blushing further, Tristan ran his fingers through his dark brown hair and turned to his still mesmerised friend. "I guess Panacea likes to show off a bit, huh?"

Emily turned back to Tristan, her smile beaming from ear to ear and what were almost tears welling in her eyes. "Just a bit. You're one to talk though, Mr I-always-wear-a-bow-tie". Giggling, she proceeded to straighten out the wonky accessory and throw her arms around her friend. "Thank you, Tristan. Though I don't appreciate you trying to outshine me outside my own contest hall, it was lovely. Really lovely". Glad she could not see the rush of crimson that had filled his cheeks, Tristan leant his chin upon Emily's shoulder and relished in the moment's embrace.

Within seconds, the moment was over. With a high-pitched squeal directly leveled at his hear, Emily pushed Tristan aside and ran towards a previously unseen member of the crowd. "Oh, Arceus above! It's you! I can't believe you actually came!"

"Well, it was fun while it lasted." Tristan recalled his Roserade back into its Pokéball in a beam of red light as Cato rubbed up against his legs and let out a sympathetic whine. Tristan smiled meekly and pulled half a poffin from his pocket. Crouching down beside his Absol, he proceeded to feed Cato with his left hand whilst simultaneously rubbing the fur on his head with his right. "It's alright buddy. I got a hug, at least. There's always next time, right?" The Disaster Pokémon looked up at his trainer, his mouth still full of poffin and nodded his assent, poffin crumbs dropping from the fur around his mouth. "When you finish that what say you and I go see what the commotion is about?"

"_Mhab-Schol!"_

Walking over to his friend, Tristan tried his best to evaluate the visitor that had made her so worked up. It was a girl, somewhere in her early to mid-twenties perhaps. She had bright blue eyes which acted only to compliment the mass of brilliant ginger hair that was tied in a slightly off-centre ponytail. She was wearing short denim hot pants and a tight-fitting pale yellow polo shirt, emblazoned on the right breast with the small silhouetted figure of a Psyduck. Obviously something from one of the new chain Pokéstores; the new range of clothing was all labeled with a silhouetted colour-matching Pokémon. Thinking back, Tristan was sure he'd been given a red pyjama set emblazoned with a Vulpix for Christmas one year (even though he'd stopped wearing pyjamas when he was 12 and was certain the size he had been given would have only fitted him at age 12 anyway. Thanks Grandma). For no obvious reason, the girl had red braces hanging down from her shorts too. To finish the outfit off, she was wearing a pair of clean white trainers and had a strange fishing lure in the shape of herself hanging from her belt. A lure? That was it. That was why Emily had become so excited. This girl was obviously another water Pokémon fanatic. This was going to be interesting.

Spying him coming closer, Emily called out to her friend. "Tristan! Come here, there's someone I want you to meet".

Tristan recalled looked down at his faithful companion and smiled. "No turning back now, Cato. We're going in!" The Absol laughed and happily trotted by his master's side.

"Tristan, this is Misty. She's the gym leader at the Cerulean Gym all the way in Kanto! She came all this way just to see my show! Isn't that awesome?!"

Tristan put out his hand to greet the young gym leader. "It's nice to meet you, Tristan! Emily has told me so much about you, I feel like we're friends already!"

Blushing profusely, a small look of concern crept across Tristan's face. "Sh-she has?"

"Yeah! Which means this must be Cato!" Misty knelt down beside the Absol and started petting the Disaster Pokémon on his back, rubbing her hand back and forth along his spine. "My, aren't you a cutie?"

"He prefers it if you scratch him just above the sickle there". Misty adjusted her position accordingly and Absol leant into her hand, emitting the growl-like purr that only Tristan could understand to be his sign of enjoyment.

"Oh, err. He doesn't sound too happy. Am I doing something wrong?"

"Nah. That's just the way he sounds when he's telling you you're doing it right", Tristan laughed and pulled another poffin out of his pocket. "Last one for the day buddy, else you'll end up getting fat".

_"Ab-sol!" _The Absol continued to sit by Misty's feet as she rubbed his head while continuing her conversation with Tristan.

"So, you came all this way to see the show? That's awfully nice of you. I'm sure Emily appreciates it". Tristan looked up to find Emily already off chatting with a few other fans. A little girl tugged at her windcheater and Emily crouched down to sign the girl's programme. She never could keep still.

"Sort of, yeah. I'm really here for the contest next week. I've never heard of a water Pokémon only contest before, and I thought I'd give it a go. I'm a water type specialist you see". Tristan nodded. He had figured as much. The lure was a dead giveaway. "When Emily told me about her show, I figured I may as well come over a little early and support her, not that she needed it. It was really a fantastic show performance". Tristan recalled having seen the gym leader sitting in the VIP section too, though of course he hadn't paid any attention to her at the time. "My sisters once put up a similar sort of performance in our gym, oh, a long time ago now. It was interrupted half way through by the arrival of a trio of thieves that my friends and I had had run-ins with, but everything seemed to turn out alright in the end. I don't envy Emily though; it's a heck of a lot of work to put in by yourself".

Tristan nodded. He knew exactly how much stress the project had caused Emily as he had received the blunt end of most of it. "What about your gym? Can you just leave it for a few weeks?"

The water specialist smiled. "Oh, no need to worry about that. One of my sisters will look after it for me while I'm gone. Mew knows I've done it enough for them over the years". Tristan smiled. He had never had any siblings so he couldn't relate himself, but growing up in the tiny village where he lived, almost everyone was considered part of the family and sharing both objects and time was something he was very much used to.

"How long are you planning on staying for? There's a lot to see in Sinnoh and a few water type Pokémon you won't find anywhere else in the world!" He liked Misty, she seemed like a friendly girl and Arceus knows, anyone who could keep Emily happy was a friend of his.

The gym leader sighed. "I don't know. I said my sisters will look after the gym, but well, I can only leave them so long. They're older than me but still act like children a lot of the time. If I leave it too long I'm scared there won't be much of a gym to go back to. I would like to stay a while though. I'll be here for the contest next week, as I said, and I'll probably stick around for another week after that before heading back. I would like to see Sinnoh, though. I've never been before".

Tristan nodded to show that he was listening, though his mind had wandered slightly off subject. A gym leader specialising in water Pokémon was entering the Canalave contest. Even though Emily wasn't competing this year because she was helping organize it, it was going to be an interesting performance.


End file.
